Protect the 14th
by BlackCrow01
Summary: Can Noah have Innocence? Allen Walker is turning to be a vessel for the 14th Noah, Nea Campbell- also known as the second half of the original Millennium Earl. This vessel, like any other important carrier, has a special protector trained to keep it safe. This protector has stood with Nea since the beginning. Read this to piece the past and present together, maybe we can save Allen
1. Chapter 1: Beginning

"This stupid bar should have closed by now..." a young man irritably looked down at his pocket watch, slamming it shut before stuffing it in his pocket again. Carrying his jacket over his shoulder, he approached the entrance of the bar and swung the door open. Most of it was empty, except a red haired man leaning over a table trying to flirt with a girl while holding a half full bottle of wine in one hand.

"And as I was saying little lady-" the man came over and took the bottle from the drunk and dumped it on the floor in frustration. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Marian," the man tried to control himself calmly, "its too late for stuff like this. We should have been gone already! The boat is already gone, which means our tickets were for nothing. Now, we have to trade someone for some train tickets!"

"Boy, there's no point in fighting when there's a pretty lady nearby," Marian smiled to the girl across from him, who returned the smile.

"WE ARE LATE." he said though his teeth.

"Late for what again?"

"In your drunk state you've forgotten the important business we must attend to?"

"Um, Cross," the girl said sweetly. "If there's something you must do, don't let me get in the way-" and she she started to get up, Marian grabbed her arm and replied,

"Don't mind my idiot apprentice over there, of course I can stay for a while longer!"

" _That's it._ " Clenching a fist, the boy landed a blow to Marian's side and watched him fall to the ground in agony. "Have a nice day," he said to the woman as he carried the drunkard's body over his shoulder. The girl stared and said nothing. Opening the door once more, the man stomped outside and threw Marian on a bench that was wet from the rain.

"I told you to stop calling me that..." the man grumbled, sitting next to him. "an _idiot apprentice,_ "

"Oh come on, Winston, lighten up," Marian leaned back and slumped down in his seat. "anything for the ladies,"

"As if- you know we have important stuff to get to." Remembering his friend's confusion before, Winston continued. " The Campbell Brothers are waiting for us."

"Ah! That's what we were doing...how did I end up here then?"

"You said you had to use the restroom, then ran straight into that bar. That was over three hours ago."

"THREE HOURS?!" Marian sat up and suddenly tugged on his friend as he put on his coat. "We've got to go now. We'll be lucky if nothing has happened to them yet,"

"Now you're talking, Cross. Let's get going- maybe we can sneak on one of the trains instead of paying for new tickets,"

 _...Flash forward..._

Racing through a booth, the men made their way onto a busy ship and hid behind some cargo before the security could find them. Cross had a sneaky smirk on his face, while Winston glared at him and held a fist to threaten him. Keeping quiet, they waited until they started moving to go to the upper deck, where people crowed and talked to each other.

"This beats the train," Cross said, pulling out a cigarette. Smacking it overboard, Winston reminded him,

"You can't smoke on board, you _idiot_! You're gonna get us caught!"

"Excuse me, but I'm pretty sure they wouldn't mind me having a good smoke." He pulled out another one and lit it, putting it in his mouth. Not even a minute later, a crew member came and nearly threw Marian overboard. Winston promised to keep an eye on Cross, who already fumbled in his pockets for another smoke.

" _This is gonna be a long trip..."_ Winston thought to himself, elbowing Cross in the side as he walked by.

 _...Flash forward again..._

"Pit stop!" Marian paraded across a busy street to a diner that was already crowded with people.

"Don't you think we should be avoiding crowds? We're trying to _**hide**_ from the Black Order anyway," Winston mumbled next to him as they entered the building.

"Don't be such a bummer, Win. Even hideaways like us need to stop for a quick break!" Marian approached a stool and quickly ordered some wine. He winked at a young woman who took a shot next to him and was quick to start flirting again.

Outside, Winston leaned against the building and crossed his arms, knowing he'd be waiting for his friend to finish his drinking break. Slowly, it started to rain, and it picked up quickly. He was getting soaked, but he only stood there, his eyes closed as his mind wondered in thought. He thought of Neah and Mana. There was something that brought him to them that one day when they were only children. He and Neah were fast friends, and Mana became his best friend in due time. Cross came along when the times started to get difficult. After some time roaming together out in the country, they split up for answers- Cross kept Winston with him for unspoken reason.

"Much time has gone by, Cross. What will we be able to do when we're late for _**his**_ greeting? _**He**_ is making his return very soon- we've seen the clues. No one will be safe if we're not there to stop that ' _special_ ' greeting." Winston said under his breath, the heavy rain making it barely audible.


	2. Chapter 2: You Hide and I Seek

"You know, its been years since I've last seen them. I feel excited."

"Contain, yourself. This is not a play day- we're here on business." Marian adjusted his glasses as we both examined a tall, old house that stood within an empty field. It was quiet with only the wind disrupting the silence that surrounded us. Slowly, I went to the door and knocked twice.

Nothing. I knocked again. No one stirred.

"Are they even here?" I retreated to Cross who lit a smoke and raised it to his lips. He looked around and stopped soon to look at a broken window.

"This is an old place," Cross murmured. "but they're here. You can feel it, so don't doubt yourself Winston." I folded my arms and kept quiet. He let out a puff of smoke and approached the door. Instead of knocking, he stood a step away from the door and waited. After a second, he brought his leg up and kicked open the door.

"You...you just broke the door..." I stammered. He glanced back at me and went into the house without a word. I followed, placing the door against the opening to somewhat cover the doorway. Walking over a messy wooden floor that creaked under the pressure, I observed Cross as he held up his Innocence like we was about to fire it. "Whoa, what are you doing? Marian?" I whispered loudly to the man. Keeping his eyes forward, he replied firmly,

"Stay cautious. Something may have happened here," I stopped and removed my broad sword from its sheath. I separated from Cross and went down another hallway that led down stairs to the cellar. Taking a lantern and lighting it with a match, I continued on my way down the stony steps downstairs.

It was suddenly colder down there, and I regretted removing my jacket outside only minutes before entering the home. A slightly disconnected pipe let water seep from it, and the sound of the water droplets hitting a puddle echoed throughout the large underground room. There were abandoned tables and supplies laying around, some chairs knocked over. Then there was the displeasing smell of rotten sewage and mold.

"Ugh, where ever those two are, they could have at least cleaned up before they left." I thought to myself. I placed the lantern down on a wood table and proceeded to the back of the cellar. A feeling inside my jut alerted me of an unknown presence within the room. Mice and bugs roamed openly along the floor, so I believed it was only me to feel this presence. Moving forward, I caught wind of a shuffling sound, like clothing against clothing. I slowed down, taking shorter strides and peeking behind every object.

"Hello? Anyone there?" I called out. "Its me, Winston."

Something darted from behind me and knocked over the lantern. My eyes adjusted quickly, and my eyes saw a figure dash into a closet. Holding my blade, I crept close to the door and opened it, finding nothing.

" _ **YOU WILL DIE, EXORCIST,**_ " spinning around, a small creature screamed and the force that came from its mouth pushed all the way back to the stairs, knocking me against a wall. Almost instantly, Marian rushed down and took aim at the akuma.

"Its a level 2," he said. "and you would have lost the fight already?"

"Caught me off guard," I scoffed, standing up. "I'm good now, don't worry." He fired off Judgment and destroyed the akuma as soon as one bullet touched it.

" _ **DARN YOU EXORCISTS...THE EARL WILL DESTROY YOU"**_

"I look forward to meeting him," Cross smirked as the akuma blew up, and its soul left.

"So I guess they're prepared for the Earl of Millennium as well," I brushed off my clothes. "Not a surprise."

"Did you at least find anything down here with all this racket?"

"Not really. I thought I did, bu this _thing_ distracted me from it."

"Show me," he urged me. I returned to get my lantern, which barely had a flame left, and lead Cross to the back. I showed him the supplies and stuff that was left behind, the overturned tables and chairs, and where the akuma had come from. I went to continue with him, but he suddenly grabbed my shoulder and pulled me back.

"Shine that light over there, Win." he told me. I did what he said and angled my light over to a corner. A small object hovered there, like it was watching us.

"Hey, isn't that-" I started.

"Timcany?" Marian exclaimed. He held out his hand. "It's Tim, so they must be here,"

"Not only that, but if Tim is here, then where's my golem at?" I pondered. As if on cue, a rodent came from a hole in the wall and peered up at us. I gasped and started to cheer. "Cecil!"

Cecil was my own golem that took that form of a ferret-like creature. I had left him here to take care of any akuma, but obviously all he knew how to do was hide. How _useful._

"That can only mean that they are here," Cross concluded, still looking at Timcanpy. Leading the way, he headed in the direction that Tim came from cautiously. We found a small crawlspace hidden behind some boxes.

"I'll go first," I told him, and he nodded. On the other side was a small room. Two unmoving bodies encased in a blanket sat in the corner in the dark. Cecil went over and sniffed them. I came closer, shining my lantern to it. They moved. A deep sound came from one of them. One of them was snoring. Ripping the blanket off, I quickly called for Marian.

"MARIAN COME HERE NOW!" I cried. The figures didn't even move. Stepping out of the crawlspace, Cross scoffed and fired Judgment straight in to the air. One of them jumped up and started to freak out.

"You were in here the entire time?" Marian growled. "You two..."

"YOU WERE SLEEPING THROUGH EVERYTHING?" I clenched my fists at my sides. "And with the akuma roaming around down here? What was that all about?"

"Oh yeah, the akuma." the boy remembered.

"Don't say that so casually!" I shouted.

"Shut up, idiot." Marian said, placing his gun back to his side.

"Well, that akuma showed up outta nowhere. Since we don't have Innocence, we just hid down here. I guess it followed us so we just stayed here for a few days. Actually, we just started running out of food last night, so I'm glad you guys came."

"Geez, Mana. I could strangle you guys right now. You have no idea how hard it was to get here." I exclaimed.

"Was it that hard?"

"Its difficult when your partner stops at every town to get drunk and flirt." I shot at Marian, who glared at me.

"Watch your mouth, idiot."

"Or what?" I puffed my chest out. "Having you as a traveling partner is the worst!"

"Can you guys keep it down?" a muffled voice came from underneath the blanket. A boy, about my age, poked his head out and looked over at us.

"Neah, get up." Mana pulled off the blanket. "We're safe to go now."

"I wanna stay down here. I never get as much sleep up there," he whinned.

"Neah..." I marched over to him. I pulled on his arms for him to sit up, where he limply mumbled under his breath.

"Whatever," he said. "I was hungry anyway."

"Hungry? You took my portion last night! How are you hungry?" Mana looked down at him. Taking something beside him and putting it in his mouth, he faced us with half a loaf of bread sticking out of his mouth.

"What'd you say, Mana?" Neah's muffled voice asked through the bread. Mana turned away, irritated, and went through the crawlspace. "Hey, wait up, brother!" Neah soon followed after him.

"Well, they're alive," I confirmed to Cross. "Very much alive."

"Now we deal with the trouble at hand." he responded. "And time is of the essence."

"Right." I agreed, chasing after the brothers.


	3. Chapter 3: Red

A harsh wind picked up as we made our way up to the main floor of the house. Dark clouds covered the sky and blanketed the horizon, and the aroma of rain was in the air. Dust and bits of debris made their way in from behind the door that Marian had kicked down, Neah and Mana saw the door and started to panic and scream.

"It was Cross, believe me! I just knocked, and he kicked down your door!" I defended myself. They turned to Marian, who was blowing out a puff of smoke on the top step.

"YOU JERK!" they yelled. Mana pushed Marian so that he started to fall down the stairs. Tim tried to lift him, but his tiny body couldn't lift the man. I laughed as I peered down the stairs.

"It was that or breaking the window," he groaned, standing to his feet.

"Come here, Tim." Neah smiled. "Cross isn't exactly the best role model in the world."

"You're telling me," I remarked. Cecil jumped on my shoulder and licked my cheek. "Last time I brought Cecil with me, Cross tried sell him for money to buy another drink."

"Would you all stop talking about me? Its annoying."

"Oh come on, can't we have a little fun?" Neah smirked, moving into the main room. He jumped on a couch, which caused a bomb of dust to arise. Mana and I started coughing. Cecil started to sneeze(like a kitten!).

"We have important business to attend to, and this is not the time for fun and games!" he growled. I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms. Total seriousness filled the room.

"A lot of weird events have been taking place around us," Mana started. "Not to mention the many akuma we've dodged within the past few years. Things are getting more intense."

"I have to agree," Neah spoke up, pulling Timcanpy's cheeks apart and squeezing them together again.

"There's been some fishy stuff going on."

I looked over at Cross who was analyzing their statements. I was deep in thought, trying to find a way to phrase the information that I already had yet kept from the brothers.

"There's a reason for this." Marian finally said.

"What is it?" Mana asked curiously. I could see that he really didn't want to answer Mana's question. "How bad can it be?"

"Fatal." was all I said. Neah sat up and Mana looked taken back. "One of you could die, or both of you."

"How-"

Our conversation was cut off by a knock at the still broken door. There was a pause, then they knocked again. This time, the door fell down from its position against the door frame onto the dirty floor. A shadow appeared on the doorstep, still like a statue. A flash of lightning lit the figure for a second before they started moving inside of the house. I put my hand on my blade, ready to unsheathe it for defense. Footsteps hit the floor softly as they slowly approached us from the hallway. The light from the room finally gave the figure some detail.

"Wait a second," Neah exclaimed. "Red?"

"Red," Mana went over a boy maybe a year or so younger than the brother and had longer reddish-brown hair with bangs. "How did you get here?"

"Well," the boy named Red replied modestly, "you told me you lived somewhere around here, so I made it a priority to find this place as quickly as I could."

"Why would you do that?" Neah questioned.

"You need someone to help hold this place down from the akuma, don't you? You did say they seemed to be coming after you more often."

"Hold on a minute," I burst in, confused as heck. "How do you guys even know each other?"

"When we went into town for some stuff, we bumped into Red here and we just started talking. Easy as that." Mana explained.

"You say you can protect these two from akuma?" Cross asked, directed at Red. "How is that?"

"I have Innocence." Red simply said. Everyone paused.

"You're serious?" I thought aloud. "You have Innocence?"

"He does, I've seen it in action too. He's not too bad." Neah spoke for him. "Show 'em Red, c'mon."

"Alright," Red removed his coat and hung it on a rack. Shuffling the sleeve on his left arm, his revealed a unique scar like design on his arm and hand. "Activate," he mumbled. It came to life, glowing until it became a huge claw-like weapon.

"Impressive," I nodded.

"So you do carry Innocence, but have yet to become part of the Black Order." Cross uttered.

"I haven't really thought about that- rather I don't really care to be in an Order that only deploys Exorcists on specific missions and not giving them a say in the matter." Red countered, gaining a smile from Cross.

"I like people like you," he slouched in a chair. "reasonable, freedom-loving people. If only I knew what joining the Order had meant before I did. Heck, this wasn't even a mission for me- I'm supposed to be somewhere in China right now checking out a rumor."

"So that's what your mission was," I realized. "I was wondering why you didn't tell me- we were heading in the exact opposite direction of China."

"Who are you guys anyway?" Red interrogated us. I unfolded my arms and rested my hands around my neck.

"I'm Winston. I'm not really an Exorcist, I just travel alongside Marian and help him out a little. Who knows what he would do without me? Cecil is like my pet, sorta, so don't set up any mouse traps for him please- that happened once at a bar and he nearly got decapitated."

"Do you have Innocence?"

"That's a tricky question, actually.." I mumbled.

"He won't be answering that either," Cross announced. All eyes went to him. He continued, "I am an Exorcist, almost a General actually. I have this," he pulled out Judgment, his gun. "Its bullets never miss, because when I assign them to a target, even if I miss, they home back to the target until they hit it."

"That's amazing- no wonder you're almost a General there." Red said, astonished. "Maybe you should give me lessons with Innocence." 

"I can teach you in Weapon-type Innocence. You have Parasitic-type Innocence."

"Oh, is that what it's called?"

"Yes, and as much as I'd love to answer questions, we have some business to take of." he assured Red, but directed it at everyone.

"So...the akuma again? You said you knew why they were coming after us?"Mana spoke up after a moment of silence. I looked away. I couldn't watch this. I knew Marian would give it to them straight, without warning.

Quietly, I walked up the stairs to the rooms above us. No one heard me close the door to the room that the brothers had shared, once upon a time. I remembered climbing the same steps to this room with Neah and Mana and Cross when we were little and always getting into trouble. I touched the walls with fading paint, and remembered the many nights I had stayed over with them- telling jokes, staying up all night, and just plainly messing around. They were my best friends.

I went over to a desk in a corner of the room. Papers were scattered everywhere and a few pencils were on the cold floor. On the corner of the desk was a framed, black and white picture. I picked it up. In the frame was a younger Cross, Neah, Mana, and me. Smiling. Times were easier then- no troubles or worries. Now, we faced with everything, like the world was on our shoulders. Difficult choices had to be made.

Taking out the image, I turned it over and found a note.

Our friends, forever. Winny and Cross

A smile crept over my face, and a tear raked down my cheek. Somehow I knew that no matter what happened, things would turn out okay for us. I will protect them anyway- its my job.


	4. Chapter 4: The Plan

I looked out the window of the brothers' old room from a dusty windowsill. The night air was calm and reassuring, as though nothing could possibly. What felt like an hour passed when I heard the door open behind me, then the sound of air rushing out of a mattress as someone crashed on the bed in the corner next to me. Without even looking, I knew it was Neah. I turned around, leaning with my elbows behind me on the windowsill, and saw him looking down at the floor with his hands over his face. I couldn't help but feel bad for him and his brother- there was an entire mess forming in our lives right in front of our eyes.

"So..." I sighed, peering down at him. "you know now. About the Noah Clan."

"Yeah, I've got it. I just don't know what to do about it." he replied, moving to hold his head in his hands so he could speak clearly. He wasn't crying, which made me feel a little relieved.

"Ugh...what a drag." I groaned. "This is just stupid. Stuff like this shouldn't be able to happen."

"But it did happen, and we're the victims of it. I don't know if there's anything to stop us from becoming what we were before."

"You two are different than what you were before. There's two of you, so there's two of you to split your power. In a way, this is easier- less temptation. I just worry for Mana."

"Why my brother?"

"Because," I crossed my arms and looked towards the door. "Mana isn't exactly the most mentally strong person in the world. He's more emotional than logical or physical, and you know that. But he's not weak, especially if others' lives are dependent on his decisions."

"He's not weak. But I know what you're talking about." Neah lied down in the bed.

"The Noah gene inside of you guys will try to tempt you to use it until you become a fully-fledged Noah, and you'll like it because you'll start to believe that normal humans and Exorcists are false creations of God." I explained. "There are 12 other Noah already out there just as I explained. They're waiting for one of you to take to role of the Earl, the 1st apostle, just like before."

"But since Mana is older than me, wouldn't that place be his? Why am I even in on this?"

"To tell the truth, it's pretty complicated. The only way I can really tell you is that the 'master' Noah gene that is above any other Noah gene was passed down the the both of you. I don't know of one of you-or even both of you- are meant to take the place of the 1st apostle."

"So let me get this straight," Neah said, sitting up again. "So we carry the will of Noah right? But God chose Noah because he was righteous and the other men were not- which explains the Flood and the boat that he built. How could people that carry an awakened Noah gene be so evil and cruel?"

"I believe that they call it the gene of Noah because he was the one to survive though what God washed away in the Flood. They carry what God had meant to wash away- Lust/Pleasure, Wrath, and so on. Although it says that the Noah fought against the first users of Innocence, I prefer to believe what the good book tells us, instead of it says on the Cube. Although Noah was great, the remnants of what was originally washed away came to be again through his own blood- his genes."

"I see." Neah then stood and began to pace around the room in thought. I closed my eyes and waited for him to speak again. Suddenly, in a more positive tone, he practically shouted, "I've got it!"

"What is it? Why are you so happy all of a sudden?"

"Well I wouldn't call it happiness, Winny, rather, I've thought of a great idea!"

"Well tell me, don't wait for me to ask you!" I urged him.

"If I could become the Earl of Millennium, then I could stop the other Noah and the akuma from continuing to destroy everything. I can control them enough to make them stop, and the akuma wouldn't be a problem for the Exorcists anymore."

"But in order to do something as extreme as that, you'd have to be a full Noah to control anyone. They just don't listen to someone with the gene. Plus you're not taking into consideration that even though they can be manipulated by the Earl in a way, they still have control over themselves and what they want to do. There's a possibility that they won't even listen to you, despite the fact that you might be the Earl."

"Then I'll kill them. There will be no other way to stop them from doing all these evil things."

"There's 13 of them, Neah. How are you gonna stop all of them like that?"

"One by one, I'll destroy every one of them that don't follow me. Simple as that. If they attack as a whole, then I'll just give them all I've got."

"You don't even know what your abilities are yet," I claimed. "for all you know they could be stronger than you."

"I won't let them. I have the 'master gene', so I'll use it best I can." he smirked. I stared at him, rethinking his plan. "Plus," he added. "if this goes well, then we won't have to worry about Mana either."

Minutes ticked by. I stood tall and walked over to Neah and rested a hand on his shoulder. I looked him straight in the face and said, "Neah, I am fully dedicated to assisting you and Mana. I will do anything to make sure you guys survive. And if you want my help here, I have one condition."

"What's that?"

"When you become a Noah, you can't think like one. The more you act or think like a Noah would, the more you become one of the Noah you're trying to destroy. And if I lost you, my best friend, to them, I'd go mad."

"I'll remember that. And if I do become one of them, I give you full permission to destroy me. In fact, I'll tell you now as a command- if I become an evil Noah, I want you to kill me, no one else."

"You have my word." I promised.

"Same here," Then the door opened a little, and Mana stepped into the room. He had a victorious smile on his face as he approached us.

"I want in on this," he announced. Before Neah or I could cut him off, he continued. "I know I wouldn't be able to fight, but I want to help in some way. This is also my problem, and you said you'd help the both of us, Winston." he paused. I nodded but didn't see where he was going with this.

"Mana, there's nothing else for you to do other than to not give in to the Noah inside of us," Neah stated. "I can handle everything else."

"I know you can Neah. But you're my little brother, and I want to make sure you're safe. So I only have one thing to add to your plan."

"Go ahead, tell us." I impatiently told him.

"Winston, you have to stay will Neah and help him fight. No matter what happens, do not leave his side." Mana let out. "Leave me here of you need to, but make sure he comes back alive."

I took a step back and shook my head a little. A small smile came across my face. "You guys don't understand," I whispered. "you just don't understand."

"What's wrong, Winny?" Neah asked. He came towards me, but I looked at both of them and began to speak again.

"I 'm here to protect the both of you. You're both the 13th and 14th Noah in the Noah Family, and I will protect the both of you until I die. Get that memorized."

Looking at each other, Neah and Mana both began to smile. In a chuckle, Mana said,

"Guess there's no getting around it." He walked over to me and placed his hand on my shoulder, and Neah did the same. "You say you were meant to protect us? Then, you better do just that. This is your job now, Winston."

"Protect us, Winny, just as you say you will, and this should end so everything can go back to the way it was before. We need to win, and we need your help."

A while later, everyone gathered downstairs again and we began to talk like normal friends- nothing too serious or on matters of Noah or akuma. Soon after, Marian raided their basement for alcohol and became drunk in under twenty minutes. Instead of the drunken flirt he normally was, he was grumpy and annoying since there were no women around. Red and Mana talked about going into town the following day for some supplies.

Amid everything that was going on, Neah got up and started to play the piano in a side room of the house. I stood behind the corner and listened to him play for a while. When I turned in to see him, I saw that he had transformed. A white coat was over his back and a silver mask was over his face.

"His Noah form." I thought. The music was also different, but I couldn't place my finger on it.

I went upstairs as it hit midnight. I pulled off my coat from a hook and used it as a pillow instead of a dust mite infected one. The brothers should have really though about cleaning this room sometime soon.

It soon came to my attention that I had a weird feeling on my chest. I scratched at my skin as I tried to sleep, but the feeling stayed. I sat up from the bed and looked down at my chest when I spotted an abnormal mark on it. Panicking for a second, I rushed to the bathroom and examined myself in the mirror. My jaw dropped to the ground.

"What the heck is this?" I asked myself. A sign looked like it was stamped or burned into my chest. It looked like an X cross directly over where my heart would be. It glowed a light blueish color around the edges. "How did this happen?"

I immediately remembered making my promise to the brothers. I wouldn't have thought that something like that would cause this. But maybe, it could be because to whom I made my promise to. I frowned a little.

"I practically swore myself to the Earl of Millennium." I murmured. "And this mark is a reminder of my actions." I looked up and observed my face. My eyes changed to the color of the glowing that surrounded my mark. Blue-gray.

"Looks like my promise is forever, 14th."


	5. Thanks

I would just like to say thanks for all the support I'm getting for this story, because you guys encourage me to keep writing it! I LOVE D. Gray-man, and writing this story has become very fun for me. I appreciate the reviews and the followers I have gained within the past couple weeks- you all are awesome!

Because I'm gaining a following in this story, I have something I want you guys to do for me. I'm going to be illustrating Winston and Cecil and other character from Protect the 14th with my account on Deviantart (dA) so what I want you to do is follow me there to keep up and help this new community grow! In return, I will be accepting requests to draw your characters from your own DGM stories! All you have to do I make a free account on dA and go to my profile- I will leave a URL at the bottom- and follow me and leave a request in the comments section at the bottom of the page.

Once more, I'd love to say thank you for all the inspiration and encouragement that you've given me! And if any of you need help keeping up with the new D. Gray-man Hallow series, you can watch the newest episodes after they're released on (I'll leave a link below) for free in good quality. Every seven days or so, a new episode is released.

Anyways, on to the next chapter of Protect the 14th!

My Deviantart:

-man Hallow: /Anime/D-Gray-man-2016

AND A SHOUT OUT TO jy24 : YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHIN' YET


	6. Chapter 5: The Earl

These are the events that occurred after the night I had promised the Earl of Millennium:

The following day, Neah and Mana explained their plans for Neah and I to fight and for Mana and Red to stay together in order to defend themselves against the incoming hoard of akuma while we were away. I insisted that Cross continue his exorcist duties to that no one from the Order would become suspicious. It took a bit of convincing for him to finally agree to our plan, but in the end we had our way.

Mana and Red packed up all they needed and moved to Red's home in a town that wasn't so far from the brothers' house. Neah and I only needed a few things, and with our golems, we gathered all we needed in order to go on our Noah-hunting journey. Cross once more raided the house for alcohol, and was lightly drunk before he left to fulfill this original mission.

Neah used one of his Noah senses in order to find spots were other Noah would be, although we had no luck for the first couple weeks. Suddenly, we came face to face with the Noah representing Wrath. That's when I caught a glimpse of Neah's new power. He transformed- a white cape wrapped around his body and a silver mask was brought over his face, just like the other night. Then, he pulled a large broadsword from thin air and battled the angry Noah. I went at it with Neah, dealing few hits every now and again while I struggled to stay clear of his raging fists. In the end, Neah finished him.

We were wounded and practically dead for our first time fighting a Noah, but now we made a name for ourselves within the Noah family. The other Noah would be on the lookout for us, seeking revenge for the death of their brother Noah. Neah nearly started to cry- the Noah gene in full affect- and felt empathy for the dead Noah. Soon, he recovered and we began to lay low for a few days to avoid confronting another Noah too soon.

Events took off rather quickly after that. By the end of the year, Neah and I had destroyed five Noah. Neah somehow bested all of them and defeated them one after the other. Not one had sided with him yet. The next year, another 5 were dead. I knew that at some point, new Noah would rise from random people and use their Noah Memory to remember us, the ones who killed them. We could only hope that the new generation would accept Neah as the Earl.

Finally, we reached an eleventh Noah. This one was more powerful than the others, relying on the pain we caused from killing the other Noah. I came closer to death than ever before, and came to the point that I couldn't continue to fight this battle with Neah. This fight dragged on for three days. I used Cecil and Tim to get out of the rubble before it crushed me. I honestly started to think that we couldn't kill this one.

My beliefs changed when Neah limped over from a pit they had created in the fight and collapsed next to me. We stayed like that for a few days, letting our regenerative abilities take over while we recovered.

"Eleven Noah dead," I said in a raspy, dry voice. I tried standing, leaning on my sword for balance. Neah did the same, and we leaned on each other to keep from falling. He summoned a portal to his ark, Noah's Ark, and we sat against the walls of the pianist's room.

"Why are they so difficult?" Neah questioned quietly. "They'd rather die than stop being the way they are."

"I guess its just the gene. You're probably the only one to be able to balance your gene with your reasonable human logic." I replied, sheathing my sword. Cecil cuddled in my lap as Timcanpy dropped onto Neah's shoulder.

"Maybe so..." he murmured, taking Tim and holding him in his hand. He went over to the piano and stared at the keys. "What about Mana? Do you think he's okay with this? All of the Noah Family is connected by that gene, so he might have the same Empathy as the others did and want to avenge them too,"

"Well, its been a few years since we've seen him. We should see before we find the final Noah." then I remembered. "Wait, isn't it your birthday tomorrow?"

"Huh?" Neah thought for a second. " Yeah, I guess it is."

"Then for your birthday, we'll go home and celebrate with Mana and Red."

"Sounds alright with me," he grinned slightly. " only Mana knows how to make cake, anyway."

"That's the spirit!" I cheered. Neah began to play, and hummed a tune with the melody.

I realized how powerful and strong Neah was as a Noah through those past years. He was different from the Family. I knew that they would all remember Neah for ages to come.

Within minutes we arrives at the town where Red and Mana were housed. The sun had already began its descent beyond the horizon, and evening stars were shining overhead. As a portal opened along an empty dock near the town, I glanced over my shoulder to see Neah still sitting on his seat.

"Something wrong?" I asked. He looked like he had just come out of a trance when he answered,

"Oh no, I'm alright. I'll meet you there. There's just something I need to check around here."

"If you insist," I shrugged, leaving. I walked down the road to Red's apartment amid the sleeping town alone. Everything was silent aside from my footsteps against the dry, dusty ground. Clouds loomed in the evening sky as I turned to enter the building.

Immediately, my stomach dropped and a chill went down my spine. I only glared at the door handle, not turning it to go in. Something was off. It was too quiet.

"What's going on?" Was all I thought. "Why am I suddenly so cautious?" I started to grip the door handle. As the door opened, I was meant with a blast of hot air and a flash of light that pushed me through the walls of the complex building.

I landed in a heap of bricks and wood. A fog of dust and debris blinded the sight of the destroyed complex that was intact only moments ago.

Then I gasped-taking in a bunch of the smoke as I did so.

Among the junk and smoke stood two figures. They faced each other with anger and the lust for blood. I could almost instantly identify them.

"Mana…Neah…no."


	7. Chapter 6: A Nightmare

This was all happening too quickly. The area suddenly became like a ghost town, and whatever bodies that were caught in the explosion were buried underneath the walls of bricks and wood that were knocked down. I sat on top of some of the debris, but it suddenly gave way and I fell a few few into a hole of dust and old wood. I felt my foot twist some way and shocks of pain went up and down my leg. I grimaced and attempted to pull myself out, but more stuff piled over me. Cecil found his way down and looked at me innocently, then took a part of my shirt in his mouth and tried to pull me up.

"I need to get out," I told him. " I need to stop their fight-"

The sound of footsteps and shuffling came closer to me. Wood that was stacked over me was moved to the side and a few rays of light poked through the opening. A head peeked over me and a hand reached down to offer me help. Cecil jumped onto the extended arm and went up and I took their hand as they pulled me up. I groaned as my foot dangled for a moment before I fell back onto the ground outside the hole.

"Are you okay? I heard something explode, and when I came over I saw you fall down there so I rushed here as fast as I could. Is your foot okay?" It was Red. I was surprised he wasn't in the building when it exploded. Despite my short lived surprise, I forced myself to stand. My leg wobbled as I struggled to stand, but I endured the pain and started to move towards the standoff between the brothers. "Wait! You shouldn't go over there-"

Leaving Cecil with Red, I started to run as fast as I could to them before he could finish his sentence. With every step, my leg felt like I kept hitting my foot with a sledgehammer. Tears came to my eyes, and the dust in the air only made my eyes worse. I nearly fell every step I took, but I knew I had a promise to keep.

"Stop!" I cried out, "don't do it Neah!" I finally stood between them, panting loudly and coughing blood. Their eyes had an amber hue to them, but they were as cold as ice. Looking at Mana, I could see that he wasn't in his right mind. He had a smile on his face that taunted Neah, daring him to attack. Neah glared back at him, unmoving. I could see in his face that he didn't want to fight Mana, but something was itching at him to lift his sword at him.

"Let's meet again, brother." Mana smirked evilly. Then, as though he just fallen from sleep walking, he fell to the ground, his skin and eyes reverting back to their normal human color. Neah released his sword and went on his knees, staring at the ground.

"Neah.." I whispered, but he didn't answer. Red cautiously approached when he saw them fall. I could only wonder what was going through Neah's mind- for him to have to fight Mana was unbearable to even think about. It seemed impossible, but it nearly happened before my very eyes.

"We can't stay here, the Exorcists are probably on their way now," Red pulled me from my thoughts. "I suggest we reside in their old home for now, at least until we can figure everything out again."

"Right," I said as I pulled Neah up and helped him stand by leaning him on my shoulder. Red put Mana over his shoulder and started walking out of the wreckage. Neah's shuttered breath caught my attention, and he began to speak.

"I don't know what happened...I'm so sorry..." he barely managed to say.

"Don't worry about that right now, Focus on controlling yourself before something like this happens again," I remarked. "There's something going on here between you two, and it seems to only be unearthing itself now."

"I don't want to kill Mana," he murmured, a tear falling to the ground. I glanced at him, feeling bad for not being able to prevent their confrontation. After a bit, I said,

"I told you guys that I would protect the both of you. Even if you two insist on fighting each other, I'll find a way to keep you safe from yourselves."

I felt him look over at me, then return his gaze to the ground.

We returned to Neah and Mana's old house and settled there. We placed them in separate rooms from each other to avoid any quarrels. They were right across from each other in the hallway, however, and so they were still very close to each other. Red went downstairs and slept on the couch as I took a chair in Neah's room. He slept almost peacefully on the bed beside me, as though nothing had gone wrong at all.

As this happened, I stayed up and brainstormed. I had to find a way to keep the peace between those two without killing anyone. Ideas passed though my head constantly, yet nothing was enough to solve this puzzle. In due time, I felt tired. I wanted to sleep, but forced myself to stay awake.

Everyone has their limits, however. Before I knew it, my head was hanging from my shoulders, and I passed out. I was exhausted, and my body still ached from the destruction that occurred earlier.

" _Where am I?" I heard my voice. I could neither hear nor see anything- only darkness and space was what I could see. I felt a presence there, like someone was watching me. Suddenly, a candle was lit in the middle of the dimension. It was an overturned birthday hat. Was this a joke to that shadow that watched me in the darkness?_

"Hello, human. What was your name again? Winston? Mind of I call you Winny?"

 _A child's voice echoed from all sides. The light flickered as I focused on it, unable to look away. I noticed a small shape next to it. A birthday present. As though it was haunted, the ribbon removed itself and the top floated from its place on the box. Inside, a doll sat looking up at me,_

" _What is this? Who are you?" I asked, examining the doll. The doll stood up on its own and came out of the box. "Demon," I spoke. "is this dark matter?"_

"Don't be so naive, Winny." _it responded._ "I am not an akuma. You can trust me."

" _I don't know you. Why can't I move? Where's my body?"_

"This is your conscious, so you don't really have one unless you imagined one yourself, of course. Right now, though, I'm in charge of this dream. I want to make something clear to you."

" _What? Who are you if you're not an akuma? Surely you're not an angel, or else you would not have control over me."_

"I am Road. The Ninth Apostle in the Noah Clan. Nice to meet you, Winston."

" _Noah?..." I thought. "You must be the last one." I said slowly._

"Right, but let's not talk about that right now. Although...i should kill you for slaughtering my Family like that, so consider yourself lucky at the moment."

" _What do you want, Road?"_

"Don't sound so uninterested, after all, this is about the Millennium Earl, not you." _She paused,_ "I wanted to show you something."

 _Before I had a say, the candle went out and the doll disappeared. I felt blind until another light appeared. I suddenly had my body again. I walked over to the light and was greeted with a familiar sight,_

 _Mana was laying in his bed, sleeping and obviously oblivious to my being there. His chest moved up and down slowly as he slept. Then, I felt someone appear behind me, Neah entered the room and stood at the end of Mana's bed, staring at him. I looked at his eyes- they turned golden, and his skin became darker. He clenched his fists and glared at Mana, who didn't move a muscle. Neah climbed onto the bed and stood up to look down at his brother._

" _Oh no," I said, watching helplessly. "Don't do it Neah!" I cried out, just like I had only hours before. I jumped onto the bed and shielded Mana's body with my own. Peering deep into his eyes, searching for the normal, human Neah that was a slave to his Noah, I continued to protect Mana. Neah's icy cold stare seemed to look straight through my soul._

"He can't see you," _Road interrupted abruptly. "_ He's fighting himself. Deciding whether to kill Mana now or later."

" _He wouldn't kill Mana." I stated, not moving my eyes from Neah. "I know that he sees me, and if not me, then he sees something that's preventing him from murdering Mana."_

"Very stubborn you are," _she chuckled._ "You have **no** idea how right you are."

" _Huh-" as I tried to talk, Neah lowered himself from the bed and left without a word. His eyes didn't change._

"You really are a good friend to him," _Road said, actually sounding sincere._ "But you can't protect him from fate. Besides, he's not the only one that's changed."

" _What do you mean by that?" I questioned, standing upright again. The doll from before took a place at the end of the bed and pointed it's small arm at Mana. I turned to him and watched as his eyes snapped open and returned a late, golden glare to where Neah had stood before._

" _No...Mana don't let it control you.." I was frozen where I stood. Somehow, his eyes had an aura about them that made me feel like I was surrounded by akuma._

"Like I said, Winny. You can't interfere with events like this. Use your head. If I were you, I'd take that other guy and just ditch these two and leave them to their business. What can I say though? I'm a Noah, I don't really care about you two. I'll just be rooting for someone to become the Earl."

 _Her words ignited a fire within me. Those words that she spoke got to me and pissed me off the moment they left her lips. I turned to the doll, red faced and fists trembling with anger._

" _ **Don't you dare say that again."** I growled. " **They are my friends- no, we're brothers. I will never let them kill each other without interfering one way or the other. So, unless you're going to kill me, get the heck out of my dream now."**_

 _The doll sat there for a good few minutes before the world around me began to fade away. She said nothing more, but I heard a slight chuckle come from the blackness around me._


	8. Chapter 7: Spilled Blood

... _You have to get up...Winston...get up..._

A rumbling, earth-vibrating feeling shook me until I fell from my seat. It was day break, and the sky was still a little dark with a pink horizon in the distance. My neck ached, and I rubbed it with a groan.

"What was that?" I said to myself. I turned to Neah's bed and found it empty. I ignored my pain and was on my feet with a start. The blankets were folded nicely, like a mother had organized it earlier. As if on cue, Red rushed into the room and practically broke the door with how quickly he opened it. Before I could ask, he interrupted.

"They're in town again! They left while we were asleep!"

"What?" I gaped. "How? I was right here- I would've heard them leave!"

"Neah must have used his Ark. Mana probably left from his window, cause I slept near the door downstairs."

Another earthquake caused us to loose our balance. I landed on my knees and quickly shouted to Red over the noise of shifting earth and shattering furniture downstairs.

"We need to get there now! I need to stop them before they kill each other!" 

We started out the house, Cecil climbing along my back for the ride, and raced towards the town. Normally, it took us around half an hour to get there, but with our personal abilities we split the time in half, even with the occasional earthquake.

Just as we entered the gates around the town, something crossed the sky like a comet above us and created a crater when it hit the ground. It was Neah. He jumped up, gripping his broadsword at his side with a scowl planted on his face.

"NEAH!" I cried out, trying to catch his attention. For a brief second, he looked over, but was pushed back with a ball of Dark Matter that was thrown from across the town square. I ran over to him as the dust settled and stood over him cautiously- I was unsure if he was in his Noah state or not.

"What are you doing here?" I heard him cough roughly. "You're sure to be killed in a battle like this."

"Neah, why are you here? Are you okay?"

"You should worry more for the other guy over there," Neah pointed in the air to a floating figure that looked down at us with a wicked smile.

"Is that the final Noah we didn't kill?" I asked reaching for my sword at my side, even if it was useless against a Noah.

"No...he's not the last one. He's the First. That's Adam."

I examined the figure closer through the thick screen of smoke and dust. The man behind the screen was Mana.

"Mana..." My heart picked up its pace. "no way." He was completely transformed- he looked older and his skin was dark like a Noah's, and he had the signature golden eyes.

" _I"m not Mana ..."_ his voice was like an icy sword. " _don't call for that boy anymore...he's gone.."_

I stepped back. Neah was obviously outraged and launched his sword at the Noah with an aggravated roar. I saw that his eyes weren't golden, so he was in control of his Noah for now.

" _Why did you kill them?I'll teach you not to fight with your Family, 14_ _th_ _."_ Adam exclaimed in a chaotic tone with a smile.

"Let go of Mana!" Neah screamed, throwing himself into the Noah, and stumbling him in midair. Adam took Neah's throat and tossed him down like a sack of flour. The stone fountain amid the square caught Neah as he fell and was made into pebbles by the impact. It was then that I realized that there were no more people in the town, it was deserted.

"What's been going on here?" I thought. A looked at a fallen wall and spotted something that spiked up. "An akuma's spike?" Then I saw through on the ground behind me- hundreds of akuma-made bullets pierced the ground with spots of blood streaked on the sides. When I looked for Red, I turned to find him finished off the last of the akuma by the gates we had just entered with his Innocence.

"Stupid Noah.." I mumbled, "stupid akuma." Then I went off for Neah. I guess o caught the attention of Adam as I hurried to him- he floated down and stood between me and Neah.

" _Why are you here, boy?"_ He questioned. " _Ah...i remember you. You assisted the 14_ _th_ _, right? "_

"I would do it again, given the chance." I spat. "Tell me what you did to Mana."

" _Mana, Mana, Mana. Is that all you say? Let it be the last thing you say, boy, for Mana is dead here, and soon you will join him."_ He held out his hand and let a ball of Dark Matter collect in his palm. " _ **TELL HIM I SAID HI ! "**_

Just then, I was pulled upwards into a portal. Neah greeted me, panting hard as he leaned over to haul me through his Ark before my body was turned to ash.

"Be more careful, Win." Neah scoffed, a small, pitiful smile on his face. "If he won't us where Mana is, we'll just have to beat it out of him."

"I can't do that much- I'm not an exorcist or anything, I can't do anything of assistance."

"No need. Just stay away from him- he'll kill you at the first chance he gets. Only thing I can do I lure him from you guys for just a bit longer."

"Neah, you can't die- remember that, okay? The future of the Noah depend on this."

"Right, I'll do my best-"

" _And so will I..."_ an echoed mocked. A moment after, a hand poked through Neah's portal and reached for his leg, pulling Neah through,"

"Neah!" I yelled, jumping out after him. Adam threw Neah away from the Ark.

" _You won't get away this time, Winston. "_ Lifting his arm above his head, a giant mass of matter shaped around Adam and made the air shift around us. It was set to explode.

"Winston get down!" Neah cried out. I looked over to Red, who ducked underneath a pile of rubble. Cecil squeaked behind my neck and braced himself on my shoulder. I said a silent prayer in my head as I peered into my oncoming doom.

Then, like a flash of light, something came past my ear and impaled the matter above us, It imploded and sent us flying back. I was knocked against a short, sturdy wall and nearly snapped my neck from the impact. Wind furled past me and went up my nose so I couldn't breathe. My injuries from yesterday returned with a vengeance as a piece of glass flew into my leg and debris smashed into my arms from the gusts.

When everything settled, I opened my eyes and saw Marian poking his head from a hole in the ground. He brushed himself off and let Timcanpy down on his right shoulder with a smoke in his lips.

"Close one, huh?" he smirked. "Did I ruin your party, Mana?"

Adam, still as stone, frowned and replied-

" _Cross Marian..Exorcist. I hate you...i will destroy you and everything you stand for. "_

"Is that so? Well I would love to see you try."

" _Gladly "_

A mighty clash announced the new battle. Marian held Judgment in one hand and pushed Adam back best he could before he prepared to throw another Dark Matter bomb our way. Neah rose from a few streets down, his coat worn and torn from the explosion, and brought his sword against Adam next. Both of them attacked the Noah with such speed, it was hard to keep up.

"I have to join them," I heard behind me. Red pushed a rock from his side and staggered up. "I have Innocence to spare." 

"Aren't you hurt?" I asked, wincing from my own pain.

"Whats worse than seeing your brothers fight against each other or for you? Nothing."

And he was right. So as I sat there watching my best friends try to take down the Noah who controlled Mana, I could only feel weak and guilty. I prayed to God none of them would die from my weakness. As I finished my prayer, Adam unleashed a sonic wind that sent everyone away from him. Except Neah.

My ears went deaf from the high speed winds near my head, and I couldn't cover them with my injured hands. I could only watch as Neah forced himself through to Adam with his sword and pushed through Adam's stomach. At that same moment, the winds stopped and Cross and Red made their way back with a single paired attack. The sound of Judgment going off signaled the bullet that made Adam's head nearly explode- without his Noah-fueled regeneration, he wouldn't have had a face anymore- and Red's Parasitic arm stretched across his side and swiped the Noah's side into shreds.

Adam fell back, trembling and crying from the pain of Innocence on his flesh. He grabbed his face that was heated from the contact of Marian's gun, and his flesh was steaming as it worked back together again. Neah didn't move, as if frozen in place. In a final attempt to kill Neah, Adam worked up the strength to hurl himself between Cross and Red towards Neah. In a flash, Neah took his sword and swung it like a bat at him, making him fly over a few buildings and into an alley. Red came over to me and helped me stand with my arm over his shoulder and we followed Cross and Neah to Adam's body.

"I was useless," I panted, "you guys didn't need me back there."

"Actually, believe it or not, you helped a lot. Without you, we wouldn't have fought as fiercely- we wouldn't have had anyone else to protect without you. Not it mention that you've been fighting battles like this with Neah before, so this was the only chance we had to prove that we could do the same."

"Really?" I smiled.

"Yeah," Red smiled back.

Our friendship moment was short lived, however. We turned the corner to group with the others, and found all three men standing still, and all three were silent as death.

"What's going on?" I whispered to Red. He didn't respond. The next move was from Neah, who stepped back and fell back against a stone wall behind him. A red spot dyed his coat and soaked it, and a bloody river spilled through.

" _I got you...the heart, I've got the heart! "_ Adam laughed manically. Cross kicked him back and quieted him, but he continued to himself, _"The Heart..the heart is mine!_ "

We all turned to Neah, who lied silent on the ground. I examined what Adam held in his hand. A heart.

I fell to my knees, speechless. Red slowly moved towards them. Neah was dying.

"He's going to die," Cross mumbled. "His heart is gone."

"Neah,..." I stammered. " no...i promised-" I grimaced at my wounds, but crawled slowly over to him. A moment of silence came over us.

"Noah have Memories that are passed down to people right?" Red asked out of nowhere. Cross answered hesitantly with a nod. "Why doesn't Neah just choose one of us to have his memories until he comes back?"

"What?! Are you mad?" I growled. "Neah wouldn't do something so desperate."

"Not out of desperation, no." Red paused. He stood a little straighter and said firmly, "I would like to hold his memories."

Me and Cross said nothing. Cross only stared at him, expressionless. I frowned and was about to speak when he kept going on.

"Neah, let me hold your memories. Use me as you see fit- as long as you return to stop the other Noah from destroying everything again, I will be content."

"Are you mad?" I clenched my teeth. My statement didn't faze him, however, as he stared at Neah, waiting for an answer. Then, a quiet darkness surrounded Red. He grabbed his neck like he needed to breathe, then fell into the darkness as it faded as quickly as it came.

"Where did he go?!" Cross held out Judgment, ready to defend and protect.

" _Worry more for your friend here, Marian. "_

I didn't move. His voice was directly behind me. I felt something pierce through my back like a spear and I screamed in pain.

" _Shhh...you made me kill Neah..."_ Adam sounded like he was crying. _" He was my brother...you killed him... I will make you pay."  
_

"Hands off, Adam. I'll finish you off here!" Cross shouted, cocking his gun.

" _On the contrary, you will be the one to stay still, Cross. One move, and I rip out his heart like I did just a second ago to Neah.. "_ He sniffled at the end, but was serious in tone. _" This boy here will make up for what I lost. You will serve me like Neah would have, and we will reunite the Family once more until we find his Memory."_

"Bipolar little-"

"Shh _! Some one has to make up for it. I will awaken you myself... all the Memories of other Noah are hanging around, waiting to stop sleeping. Let's see whom you will become.. "_

I screamed as the feeling of lava coursed through my body and my heart was a hot ember. I couldn't move my body or even think. I was dying.

Then, there was a momentous gunshot that rang in my ears. I couldn't feel anything anymore. I peeked from the corner of my eye and saw Cross turned away, but Judgment was next to my head. I smelt the ugly scent of guns moke.

"What have you done?" I said emotionlessly.

"Sorry, Winston. I can't loose you to a Noah too."


	9. IMAGE

I've finally created an official character image for this story, but since this site is very complicated you may have gotten the same notification maybe 3 times saying that this story was updated but there was nothing there. Well, just in case my link doesn't show up this time, I've copied it into all caps below and vertically ,since this site is pissing me off, so all you have to do is copy. It may be a pain, but believe me it's more irritating to put it on here a billion times and fail every single time than simply copying it and managing it a little.

Now I'm done rambling. ENJOY

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	10. Chapter 8: Another Perspective

For the first time in what felt like ages, I had finally woken up. The world was desolate and dark, and the sky was as dull as ever. When my eyes had opened, I felt like I was free again to roam the planet as I had once done. Then my body turned. I didn't feel myself turn around,but I did. I felt nothing. But when I turned, my stomach boiled with the fuel of vengeful distaste.

There, in front of me, sat Ada. His bloody smile pissed me off. I couldn't move, despite my attempts at wiping that smile off his face. I hated him with all my being. He once killed me. Now, as though he had forgotten that, he looked at me like we were partners- like we were comrades as before. I growled, but no sound escaped my throat.

" _ **I'm gonna kill you!"**_ I cried in my mind, the only place where my thoughts would be heard. Alas, I still couldn't do anything.

A slick black boot flew out from the corner of my eye and knocked Adam back. I would have laughed, but my curiosity kept me from doing so. My head moved the side. The barrel of a gun pointed down at me, a finger on the trigger.

" _ **Innocence..."**_ I thought, suddenly alert. I told my limp body to move out of the way, but it didn't move. I tried to fight for myself- still nothing. As I looked up at the man holding the gun, he held half of his face with his hand with blood dying his gloves red. His lips moved, said something, but I couldn't even hear him.

I somehow did feel the pain of a bullet through my face. As my final thought, I said to myself-

" _ **Is this even my real body?"**_

" _I'm going to kill that Exorcist!"_ I found myself screaming. I laid on my back, looking up at a pitch black nothingness. I could move by myself, so I sat up and felt my head for the bullet wound. Nothing was there. " _Stupid exorcist probably missed with that one eye of his."_ I smirked to myself.

I knew this place. It was the space sorta like between life and death. For me, however- since I was never alive- it was the waiting room for my waking memories. When my memories finally awoke, I could leave. This time however, I only had less than a moment outside of here, but it felt like heaven before the shot in my head. Then again, that moment was already ruined when Adam decided to show his face again.

Let's get one thing straight. I hate Adam for a couple reasons. Reason one: He killed me- as I said before. And its not just a simple death, either. That brings me to reason two: he betrayed me, then made my Family turn against me too. And reason three is the fact that he tries to take my place after he kills me. His very existence irritates me.

I used to be the Millennium Earl. I am the Noah of War and Chaos. My name, Dear Reader, is Havoc.


	11. Chapter 9: Havoc in His Mind

" _ **That Exorcist.."**_ I kept saying. My arms were folded on my chest as I leaned back and closing my eyes and trying to remember my better situations. One moment was all I had to see the world, and that moment was filled with the sight of Adam. _**"Adam..."**_ I growled, angry all over again. Then, with another thought, I momentarily let go of my hatred.

" **Havoc."**

My eyes opened quickly and I jumped. So much for being alone- I mean, if I am doomed to an eternity here, I should at least get some space for myself. At least that's what I thought. I examined the emptiness around me for an explanation, but found nothing. Hesitantly, I sat back down and listened closely.

" **Havoc."**

" _ **Who keeps calling me?"**_ I stood again, ready for a fight. _**"Go bother someone else or a change, huh?"**_

" **Havoc, this is not your body."**

Not my body? What the heck was this mysterious voice going on about?

" _ **If you're gonna speak in tongues, go somewhere else!"**_ I roared.

" **You're not alone here, you know. I'm here too."**

I was getting fed up with this. Without a moments thought, I balled my fists and a small blue flame ignited around them. I hit the ground and a wave of flame spread around me like a vibration before it set itself out in the blackness.

" **You can't hurt me here, boy."**

" _ **Where are you?! Show yourself!"**_

Just then, a great flash of light blinded me and threw be back a few paces. I tried covering my face but the light was so strong it felt like it burned. When it faded a bit, I removed my hands and was struck with a mixture of anger and fright.

A gigantic cube of Innocence sat before me in a glimmering pool of light. Where it came from, you tell me. I'll tell you one thing, had it been there before I would've found it by now. Though at the moment all I could do was wander how and why.

" _ **Why is this here? Has God sent this to dispose of me?!"**_ I cried out. As expected, the voice responded soon afterward.

" **As I said, this is not your body, Havoc. This belongs to another boy who's been awakened by the one you know as Adam."**

" ** _Adam did this? He purposely sent this vessel for my return? The scumbag..."_**

" **Not in particular, no. He did so as punishment for killing the 14th Noah."**

" ** _Look here, I know the Noah family like the back of my hand. There is definitely not a 14_ _th_ _Family member. Only 13. Can't something so Godly an object as you count?"_**

" **Pal, a lot has happened since you've died. For one thing, one Noah was split into the body of two twin boys. Impossible as it sounds, one of the twins was the one to awaken you."**

" ** _So technically, you're telling me this was all by chance? That's a load of bull. Adam knew exactly what he was doing when he pulled that little stunt, so don't be so surprised. And besides all that, why can't I control this body then, huh?"_**

" **Simple. The Exorcist known as Marian Cross, once a good friend of the twins, cut off your awakening before it was completely finished. In a way, only half of you is actually here. And since that all happened, that's why you're seeing the Innocence before you. It was always here, but the boy never found out how to use it- in the end it became a back up in case something like this happens, to even out the Noah memory that was awakened.."**

" ** _Only half of me is here... SO HE STILL HAS CONTROL? Dang...i should just be completely dead if this is the case."_** I trembled in madness and confusion. What was I supposed to do now? Just like you can't wear half a shoe, you can't have half of your own body. My revenge had been destroyed by a mortal child and his Exorcist friend.

Then I thought harder. An idea came to me.

" ** _So if only half of me is here, that should mean the boy can hear me right? Or, maybe he can even use some of my power?"_**

" **Undoubtedly so."**

" ** _Magnificent!"_** I was filled with a spark of joy. With what little control and power I had, I could use this boy to regain all of my power. In the end, I could still use this body to kill Adam and steal back my title- the Millennium Earl.

" **There is, however, a small favor I must ask of you."** the voice continued. I listened again, emotionless as it had disrupted my joyous thoughts. **"This boy has a promise to keep, and I believe you may be interested since you both know have the same foe."**

" ** _I'm listening..."_** I said, interested suddenly.

"Y **ou both want to take down Adam, but he want the Twin brother that Adam has inhabited to remain alive above all else. Therefore, I propose a truce until just that is accomplished."**

" ** _Hmm... killing the entire body has always been easier for me, so this task will be more than difficult."_** I thought aloud. If this boy would want to keep the twin alive more than anything, then his own body would be the payment for my assistance- which, mind you, he will need me more than I can foretell now. **_"I believe I may be able to help with that. At least, until I get my body."_**

" **Your help is appreciated."**

I nodded and felt the realm start to disappear. But as I felt my being change as well, I remembered to ask at my final seconds there,

" ** _By the way...who was I speaking to the while I was here?"_**

After a subtle minute, the voice answered,

" **I am the boy's inner conscience. I see what goes on inside of him until he can gain control of it himself. He seems to be coming to now, so I shall remain here until my help is required again."**

" ** _What is the boy's name anyway?"_**

" **Winston Walker."**


End file.
